updated 07:54 am EDT, Wed September 18, 2013

Statements about network speed, congestion in T-Mobile ads flawed

Television advertising for T-Mobile contains flawed "statements" about its service compared to AT&T that it cannot back up, according to the National Advertising Division (NAD). The Council of Better Business Bureaus-managed NAD has called for the offending ads to be removed from circulation, or changed before being viewed again.

Claims that T-Mobile offered 50-percent more bandwidth than AT&T drew NAD's ire, according toCNET. While it was based upon comparisons of HSPA networks operated by the two carriers, it did not take into account AT&T's LTE network, with not enough evidence to support a claim of congested or slower networks. T-Mobile has also been asked to modify or stop using such terms as "most advanced technology" and "faster 4G service", and to avoid using coverage maps when making any 4G or 4G LTE coverage statements. T-Mobile's "call quality" claim is also under attack, with NAD suggesting a less "overly broad" statement along the lines of "audio or voice quality."

A statement from T-Mobile states that NAD's findings "are a validation of our marketing approach. In fact, today's NAD findings won't result in any substantial changes to our marketing claims." CEO John Legere has also taken to Twitter to state "We know our marketing approach is bold, but it's the truth. Thanks AT&T for giving us the opportunity to prove it," along with the hashtag "#validated."